Chapter 26 | Go Getters
Episode 7x5(Go Getters)
"I just don't get it. If there was a higher being like God why would he make horrible things happen to people?"-Ava Reid
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-April 22nd 602 days since the start of the end of the world.
-I wake up early in the morning and get all my stuff ready to head out. Before I go out I go to the church.
-I walk in and it's empty. It's early so it's not that surprising.
-I sit in one of the seats and all I can think about is when me and Glenn were searching for anything to help Maggie. I can't believe it's only been a month since then. It seems like it was so long ago, so much has happened since then.
-Hey God don't think I have ever tried to speak to you but I just want to know if everything is going to be okay from here on out.
-After a few moments of just sitting there I come to my senses. What the hell are you doing Ava if there was a god the things that have happened wouldn't have happened.
-I go to leave the church and Father Gabriel walks in.
-"Ava would you like to talk about anything?" He asks.
-"No I was just leaving. I realized it was kinda pointless." I say.
-"What's pointless?" He asks.
-"I just don't get it. If there was a higher being like God why would he make horrible things happen to people?" I say to him.
-"I believe God does it to make us stronger and able to handle things on our own." Father Gabriel says.
-I think about that for a second it doesn't make complete sense but it makes a little sense.
-"Thank you Father." I say and walk out.
-"Just remember I am here if you need to talk to anyone." He says.
-I grab all my stuff and go to climb over the wall of Alexandria hoping no one sees me.
-"Ava." I hear Carl say behind me when I start getting the poles in the wall to climb over.
-"I need to see Maggie."
-"You're walking to the hilltop. It's far." He says while I start climbing the wall.
-"I'll be fine." I say.
-"Maybe." He says.
-"I'll be fine." I say louder this time. "I have better aim than you."
-I notice Carl looks upset after that last comment. That was a messed up thing for me to say I know Carl is self conscious about his missing eye.
-"I didn't mean it that way." I say.
-"I'm not saving you anymore." He says.
-"So that's what you've been trying to do. Save me."
-"Yeah." He says.
-"We made it back in one piece. We're still here."
-"I'm not talking about that." He says.
-"I'm sorry we had to see it."
-"I'm not." He says.
-I get over the wall.
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-I start walking to the hilltop and I come across a bicycle on the road. I stop on the bike for a few seconds and then I hear a biter. When I go to kill the biter it is run over by someone. The biter gets back up and someone backs up into it. I notice the person is Carl.
-"What are you doing here?" I ask.
-"Felt like a drive." He says.
-"You're a great driver." I say sarcastically.
-"Get in. I'll drive you to hilltop."
-"You came all the way out here for me by yourself?" I ask and get in the car.
-"Yes." He says and tries to start the car and it won't turn on.
-"You murdered the car." I say
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-We walk for a bit in silence until I say something.
-"You're not sorry you saw it?" I say.
-"Yeah I watched it both times I couldn't look away." Carl says.
-"Why?" I asks remembering how Abraham and Glenn both looked.
-"Cause when it was happening I knew that I needed to remember it so when I had the chance to kill them I wouldn't have a choice." Carl says.
-"I would kill them too, it's messed up but it's how it is. You do things for the ones you love- Loved." I say.
-"It's not for them. That's why I wanted you to stay back." Carl says.
-"I know you didn't want me to see it. I wish I didn't see it." I say
-"I don't even know if she's okay." I say talking about Maggie and start to tear up.
-"We'll get there." Carl says.
-"Yeah." I say.
-We walk in silence for a while.
-"Ava stop." Carl says.
-I turn around and go to see what he's talking about and he's looking at a backpack with roller skates in it.
-We put the skates on and roller skate down the road. Carl almost falls so I grab his hand and we continue on our way.
-After rollerblading for a bit we take them off and continue on our way.
-"That savior yesterday I wanted to kill him." Carl says.
-"Which one there were a lot of them." I say even though I know exactly which one he's talking about.
-"The creepy one. That tried to hit you." Carl says.
-"I know I saw you watching." I say.
-"If he tried to do anything else he would have been dead. I didn't care if that meant they would kill me." Carl says.
-"It's okay Cowboy. I know how to handle myself. I've dealt with guys worse than him befo-" I stop talking, not meaning to say that last part out loud.
-"Guys worse than him." Carl says concerned.
-"I don't really want to talk about it." I say to Carl.
-"That's okay you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. Have you ever talked to anyone about it? Does anyone else know?"
-"I think your dad knows. Remember back in the barn and your dad went through the journal I had?"
-"Yeah." Carl says after thinking for a few seconds.
-"I wrote about it in my journal, but that's about it." I say.
-"Now I know why my dad told me to be nice to you." Carl says.
-"He told you to be nice to me?" I ask.
-"Yeah I just figured he wanted me to keep an eye on you."
-We come across an old cabin and I'm thankful for that so that means we can change the subject.
-"Let's check to see if it has any supplies in it." I say to Carl.
-We both clear each room and in one of the bedrooms I look in there's a biter tied up to a bed.
-The biter was once a woman and she is completely nude.
-I look at the biter again but this time it's Jasmine and memories of that horrible day come back.
-"Please don't not again." She says thinking I'm one of the guys coming back in.
-"Sh it's me we have to be quiet so they don't know what's going on." I say.
-"Ava how did you escape?" She asks.
-"Doesn't matter." I say while untying her. "Here's your clothes." I say and hand them to her.
-"It's all clear here." Carl says and walks into the doorway breaking me out of my thoughts.
-I run out of the room and throw up in the hallway.
-Carl comes to my side.
-"Are you okay?" He asks.
-"Yeah I'm fine. What did you find?" I say to try to move on from the awful memories of that day.
-"Just two cans of corn." He says.
-I put them in my backpack.
-Carl then gives me a hug. I hug him back and just start crying. He holds me for a few minutes and he breaks the silence.
-"I forgot to tell you. You look amazing with shorter hair."
-I laugh even though it's not funny.
-"Whats so funny?" Carl asks.
-"You just know when to say the right things." I say.
-We get out of the cabin. Carl kills the biter and I put a sheet over her out of respect for the women.
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-We get to The Hilltop an hour or so later and we stay in the tree line and see Saviors loading up supplies from the community.
-This angers me more than it should. These people have the audacity to do this to other people. It's sickening.
-"I don't think Negan's here. I don't see that black truck." Carl says kinda disappointed.
-It clicks in my head the real intentions Carl had coming to the hilltop with me. He is planning to kill the next saviors he can.
-"You weren't taking a drive. You weren't coming to get me." I say.
-"I can't let them get away with this. You know I can't." Carl says.
-"I know." I say knowing he's right for wanting to kill them so badly.
-"Come with me. You want to kill them too. We can do it." Carl says.
-I think about it for a second. Carl wants to kill them for himself. I want the saviors dead for what they did to Abraham, Glenn, and what they took from Maggie and her baby.
-"You said it. It would be for us. Not for Abraham. Not for Glenn. Not for Maggie. You're doing it for you."
-"Yeah." Carl says.
-"So it all goes right and you do it how do you get away." I say.
-"I wouldn't matter." Carl says.
-"It would to me." I say. Carl puts his forehead to mine and kisses my forehead and kisses me.
-"I love you Carl. Please don't go. Come with me. You can-"
-"I'm gonna go home." Carl says.
-"You're lying." I say.
-"No I'm not." Carl says.
-"You shouldn't go, but I can't stop you." I say. I go to walk to the back of the hilltop.
-"I love you too." I hear Carl say.
-"Be safe." I say.
-The saviors leave the gates and I go to the front gate.
-"Who are you?" The guy at the front asks spear in hand ready to attack.
-"My name is Ava. I'm from Alexandria. I'm looking for Maggie. Can I come in?" I ask the man.
-He opens the door and I go in. I see crops all around and little trailers that people must live in and the big mansion in the center.
-"The graves are over there." The guy says, knowing my next question. "That woman Maggie, she is a force of nature, took out walkers and a car with a tractor last night."
-I go to where he told me to go and see two graves next to one another. I blow up three balloons and put them on what I assume to be Glenn's grave.
-"Ava you're here." I hear Maggie say.
-I get up. "Are you okay?" I ask her.
-"I'm not." She says and looks at the graves. "But I will be."
-We give each other a hug and we go into one of the trailers where I help Maggie make dinner.
-"Someone told me you killed biters and a car with a tractor." I say to her.
-"I couldn't sit by and watch. Not again. So I guess I decided to do something." Maggie says.
-"You're supposed to take it easy." I say.
-"It wasn't hard. It wasn't my first time." She says.
-I look at her confused.
-"Their was this boy in high school." Maggie says.
-"You ran over the boy?" I say.
-"His car. It was there and then it wasn't." She says and we both laugh at that.
-Sasha then walks into the trailer.
-"Ava." Sasha says surprised to see me.
-"Hi. I came to help." I say.
-"You came by yourself." Sasha says.
-I hesitate for a second thinking about Carl.
-"Yeah. Have some dinner." I say.
-"Why are there balloons on Abraham's grave." Sasha says.
-I look at Maggie realizing I made a mistake.
-"I didn't have the heart to tell you. Glenn would have. He was a bad liar." Maggie says
-"Sorry." I say to Sasha.
-"There's no need to be sorry. Nothing wrong with balloons." Sasha says.
-"There's nothing marking the graves." I say.
-"No I was going to use this for Glenn's." Maggie says, showing the pocket watch that he used to carry with him.
-"It was my dads. He gave it to him but I'm giving it to you." Maggie says and hands me the pocket watch.
-"We don't need anything to remember them by we have us." Maggie says
-We grab each other's hand and Maggie says a prayer.
-"For this new morning, with its light, for rest and shelter of the night, for health and food, for love and friends, for everything that goodness sends. Amen."
-"Amen." Sasha says.
-"Amen." I say.
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